Bright idea.BRIGHT IDEA The world hasn't always been so brightly fit at night. In 1879, Thomas Alva Edison invented the first practical light bulb bulb, thickened, fleshy plant bud, usually formed under the surface of the soil, which carries the plant over from one blooming season to another. It may have many fleshy layers (as in the onion and hyacinth) or thin dry scales (as in some lilies)—both of which and, soon, the entire world made the switch to electric lights. To find out how this invention changed the way you see the world, you'll have to travel back in time to follow Edison's quest to perfect the light bulb. To start your adventure, sit down at your time machine--your computer--and access the "History Portals" we've selected (see box, bottom right). Keep track of your journey by completing the "Time Travel Log" below. TIME TRAVEL LOG 1. Your first stop is the year 1876 in Menlo Park Menlo Park. 1 Residential city (1990 pop. 28,040), San Mateo co., W Calif.; inc. 1874. Electronic equipment and aerospace products are manufactured in the city. Menlo College and a Stanford Univ. research institute are there. 2 Uninc. , New Jersey. This is the site of Edison's laboratory nicknamed the"--Factory." Over his lifetime, Edison was granted--(number) patents, or rights for his inventions. 2. As you explore the city, you observe how people in the 1800s rely on natural sunlight during the day to light their homes, and burn oil or--lights at night. You note that open flames not only produce very little light, they could also be---. 3. The next day, you go undercover. Dressed in a lab coat, you enter Edison's lab. There, you find the inventor INVENTOR. One who invents or finds out something. 2. The patent laws of the United States authorize a patent to be issued to the original inventor; if the invention is suggested by another, he is not the inventor within the meaning of those laws; but in that hard at work on his most famous invention: the--. Edison wasn't the first to come up with this idea. Scientists had already invented the--light, a fight that was too--to be used indoors. 4. Edison's goal is to create a long-burning light bulb for everyday use. To do this, his researchers are trying to find a suitable material for the light bulb's thin wire--. 5. After flipping Flipping Buying shares in an initial public offering (IPO), and then selling the shares immediately after the start of public trading to turn an immediate profit. flipping through one researcher's notebook, you learn that the materials need to be a good--(materials that electricity can flow through easily). The lab's researchers hypothesize hy·poth·e·size v. hy·poth·e·sized, hy·poth·e·siz·ing, hy·poth·e·siz·es v.tr. To assert as a hypothesis. v.intr. To form a hypothesis. that as electricity passes through the wire, it will heat up and give off light. 6. Jumping into your time machine, you travel forward to 1879 and check on Edison's progress. You arrive just as someone shouts "Eureka!" After testing--(number) different materials, including fishing line and human hairs, Edison discovered a material that produced a long-burning filament filament, in astronomy: see chromosphere. . It was made--of sewing sewing: see needlework. thread. This thread burned brightly for almost 15--. 7. Despite all the celebrating going on, there is some disappointing news. Sir Joseph Wilson--, a scientist from--, just announced that he's invented a bulb of his own. But Edison's bulb has an advantage. The inside of the glass contains a better--, an area completely empty of matter even--, a gas that causes filaments to burn too fast. 8. It's time It's Time was a successful political campaign run by the Australian Labor Party (ALP) under Gough Whitlam at the 1972 election in Australia. Campaigning on the perceived need for change after 23 years of conservative (Liberal Party of Australia) government, Labor put forward a to return to the present day. Pay attention to how many ways people use artificial fights. In a concluding paragraph for your travel log, discuss some of the positive and negative effects that Edison's invention has had on the world. History Portals www.invention.smithsonian.org/centerpieces/edison/000_story_02.asp www.cbc.ca/kids/general/the.lab/history-ofoinvention/lightbulb.html www.americanhistory.si.edu/lighting/19thcent/invent19.htm ANSWERS TO SKILLS PAGES 1. Invention; 1,093 2. gas; dangerous 3. light bulb; arc; bright 4. filament 5. conductor 6. 1,600; carbonized For the process of carbonization, see . Carbonized were a Swedish death metal band. They later developed into psychedelic grindcore and gradually became more and more avant garde. ; hours 7. Swan; England; vacuum; oxygen 8. Answers will vary |
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